Reading Abbey, Berkshire

Like many of the medieval monasteries, Reading Abbey was once a large, prosperous and prestigious institution, founded in 1121 by Henry I, and flourishing for over 400 years, but also in common with the majority of similar places, it was abruptly closed in 1538, by Henry VIII. In part due to its city centre location, most buildings were quickly demolished and much of the material reused elsewhere, and now most of the site is buried beneath newer buildings.

What remains are various walls from the southeast corner of the precinct, principally the chapterhouse, the dormitory and the south transept of the abbey church, all quite substantial though rather gloomy in appearance, the appeal lessened by the modern buildings that encroach on all sides, which include, to the east, a tall wall from Redding Jail, which was constructed in 1843.

The site is bordered to the south by the River Kennett, and it is at least a quiet, secluded place. Recent renovations have stabilised the ruins, which are owned by the local council, open all the time and free to enter. Information plaques give details about the remaining sections.

Renewed interest in the ruins stems from rediscovery of the bones of Richard III under a car park in Leicester, he prior to that being one of the small number of British monarchs whose remains were thought to be lost. Henry I is another; he was interred at Reading Abbey but the precise location is unknown. The most likely burial place was near the altar, towards the east end of the church, a site now within the boundaries of the jail, though as was this closed in 2013, excavations of the site are a possibility.

The Ruins

The monastery at Reading was initially staffed by monks from Cluny Abbey in France and from a related priory at Lewes in Sussex. The first abbot was appointed in 1123, and he oversaw the construction; the site was a low gravel flat just west of the confluence of the River Kennet and the River Thames, subsequently known as Kings Mead. Construction began, as was customary, with the choir at the east end, and this section was thought to be complete by 1136, when Henry died, enabling him to be buried here at that time; it proceeded westwards with the crossing, the transepts and the nave. It took around 200 years for the entire site to be finished, including all of the subsidiary buildings, which were centred on the square cloisters, on the south side of the nave. The site was entirely contained within a boundary wall 0.7 miles in length, to the west, north and east; the southern boundary was the River Kennett and a tributary, now mostly culverted, named Holy Brook.

History

Two structures remain intact from the abbey precinct, namely the inner gatehouse which is at the north end of Abbey Street, and the hospitum, an accommodation block for pilgrims, which dates from around 1485, though incorporates a few parts of an earlier building. This lies a little way west of the ruined section, on the far side of Forberry Gardens, a city park, once the outer court of the monastery, also within the walls. Apart from a fragment of a water mill along Holy Brook, all the remaining ruins are of the southeast section; they comprise, from south to north, the north, south and west walls of the dormitory building (the actual dormitory room was on the first floor), the chapter house, the vestry, and finally the south transept. Most complete is the chapter house which is semicircular at the east end and has three arched entrances on the other side, once accessing the cloister. There is also short section of the south cloister wall, and the base of some of the piers of the nave. Most of the cloisters are beneath a private garden and large adjacent building, both of which are relatively recent, as in Victorian times all this area was occupied by terraced housing. The bulk of the church foundations are either beneath one corner of Forberry Gardens, or the buildings of St James Roman Catholic Church, which was constructed between 1837 and 1840, partly using stones from the former abbey.